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Republic of Angola (1983: Doomsday)
The Republic of Angola is a state controlled by the former revolutionary group UNITA, which sees itself as the rightful government of Angola. With the collapse of the Angolan state following Doomsday, Jonas Savimbi was quick to establish a government in Huambo. However, because of the lack of aid from abroad, the Republic was not able to defeat the Luanda government, and there has been a stalemate and unofficial armistice since the 1990's. History Pre-Doomsday Historically, Angola had only earned it independence on November 11th, 1974, from , following the Carnation Revolution that had overthrown its authoritarian, imperialistic government. However, as soon as independence was declared, there had been a division between the Left and Right wings of the freedom fighters, resulting in an almost immediate devolution into Civil War. The MPLA (Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola) had gained the upper hand against other insurgent organizations such as UNITA (National Union for the Total Independence of Angola), though the flow of support to these organizations prevented their demise. By Doomsday, the Soviet Bloc was openly arming the MPLA, while sent in its military, hoping to use Angola as a launching pad for the Communist Revolution throughout Africa. Post Doomsday Though no weapons had hit Angola on the events of September 26th, 1983, the Angolan government that had existed quickly began to collapse. Jonas Savimbi himself only began to learn when much if his financial support from the United States and Western Europe, or rather his finances in general, ceased to exist. Weapons that had been promised were no longer delivered, and communications with the South African military were now at an all-time low. When a radio line was finally able to be connected with a n unit based in Namibia, they relayed the news that the nuclear war had broken out. Knowing that the MPLA no longer had support from the Communist Bloc, Savimbi launched an offensive to the Atlantic Ocean, hoping that the MPLA would be too weak to stop him. His predictions proved right, and by November, several ports on the Atlantic Ocean had been secured, and Huambo was declared the new capital of Angola. However, Savimbi's hopes of finally uniting Angola under a single government were quickly rebuffed. Attempted offensives at Sumbe and Quibala were turned back by Cuban and MPLA soldiers, with the front moving back and forth over a ten-mile area. This would continue until 1993. In Huambo, Savimbi would declare the formation of the Republic of Angola, and proceed to begin the establishment of a democratic government. Many sources state that many within UNITA contributed to the formation of the 1984 Huambo Constitution, but there is little to no evidence to support this. It is strongly believed, especially within the Republic itself, that Savimbi personally drafted the document, showed it to his officers, and said "This is the foundation of our new country." No one would have opposed him on such an issue, either out of loyalty or fear. Regardless, the constitution became law on the 20th of June, 1984. As had been expected, the elections that year were largely unopposed, with Savimbi winning the election with by and overwhelming margin (technically, he got 112% of the vote), while the Council was almost completely controlled by UNITA (about 87%, though there were some minor parties and independents represented). Savimbi was an avid anti-communist, and had hoped to recreate Angola into a Social Democracy. The collapse of the global market forced him to reconsider his previous strategy, and eventually formulated what became known as the "Officer Economic Control Act". Basically, officers within the UNITA military arm were given control of key industries that were still viable with the Angolan domestic economy, with higher ranking members owning larger businesses (Savimbi himself would be in control of no less than two corporations by 2009). If nothing at the times was available, then they were given a large chunk of government money to start a business of their own. The only catch was that the laborers had to be given at least 90% of the profits in the form of wages, which still left plenty over for the owner. The system would not immediately kick off, but following the re-establishment of communications with the outside world in the 1990's, the Republic would experience an economic boom that continues to this day. On May 29th, 1993, President Jonas Savimbi would sign an armistice with President Frias of the People's Democratic Republic of Angola, after years of constant stalemate. Savimbi was actually surprised when he saw a Cuban as the leader of the communist faction of Angola, and almost refused to sign due to the fact that he believed that the other government was illegitimate. Leopoldo Frias, however, managed to turn him around on the basis of the waste of lives in the current conflict. After the signing of the treaty, Frias would take Savimbi on a tour through Luanda to show the conditions of the people there. Though they were certainly better than when under the MPLA, he noted that they were still worse than in Huambo. Therefore, he took Frias on a tour of his own capitol, famously stating, "We both have made the lives of the Angolan people better. But...we still managed to best even you.....without you government owned enterprises ... or your total control of the nation." Leopoldo Frias was impressed by the accomplishments, and promised to institute the necessary reforms within his own country. He would never act upon this promise. People's Democratic Republic of Angola would experience a coup against the Cuban government, replacing it with the Angolan lead . Though Savimbi hoped to possibly bring about a process of re-unification, these talks proved as fruitless as had the talks with Frias in 1995. There are reports, however, that funds are now being diverted toward certain political action groups there with the goal of destabilizing the government enough for a South Angolan takeover. These claims have not produced any hard evidence however. Similar attempts of communication with Holden Roberto, an old friend of Savimbi, who was now leading the newly created , for the most part failed, until sometime around 2006. After finally attaining a line of communications with Roberto, Savimbi would negotiate a cease-fire with the Kongo. Another meeting, though the date is unknown, would result in a defensive pact being formalized between the two nations. Though its purpose is ambiguous, it is clear that it is mainly directed at the People's Republic of Angola, which remains at war with the Kongo. Government Though it considers itself a free and democratic society, international opinion takes a different view. A President is elected by popular vote by the citizens of the Republic every five years. He has expansive powers, including a line-item veto over the legislative branch. Currently, the Presidency is held by Jonas Savimbi, though the legality of all the elections have been disputed, largely due to a lack of significant opposition, suspected voter fraud, and possible political repression. He also appoints the First Minister of the Council, who carries out the duties of the Council itself, acting with powers similar to the Speaker of the House in the former United States. The Council of the Republic is made up of elected officials, based on a system of proportional representation. They constitute the law-making body, though the President does have veto powers, in which case there must be a 75% majority to overturn the veto. Again, there is a lack of legitimacy here as well, for the same reasons as the Presidency of the nation. Also, parties are only allowed to participate in Council elections if they approved by the administration. Therefore, UNITA hold an indisputable majority, and acts simply as a stamp of approval for Savimbi's policies. The international community, especially the Republic’s ally, Australia, has called for an increase in democratic reform within the nation. As a result, Jonas Savimbi has called for a constitutional convention to be held on December 2nd, 2009. Foreign Relations Currently, the Republic of Angola is recognized by several nations as the legitimate government, significantly the , Venezuela and the . There are fears, however, of the war with the restarting, following troop movements along their border. President Savimbi has requested for their withdrawal, but there has been no response from Luanda. Economy The Republic of Angola has the fastest growing economy in the region, though growth has slowed in the region somewhat. Having reached a high-point of 43% in 1996, it now achieves an average growth of about 8.2% annually. This is in large part because of Angola's abundance in natural resources, including oil, diamonds, sugarcane, timber, etc. Also, the generous wages have allowed for some even in the lower classes of starting their own businesses even without government aid. Foreign investment has been largely dissuaded, however, largely because of the insecurity of the region. Military Until 1998, the military had been based off of conscription, with every male expected to serve for around six years, and remain on call if need be. However, a professional force quickly replaced it once the economic situation improved to such an extent that such an act proved feasible. The Army and Navy have received training from the , including importation of its weapons, making it one of the most modern militaries on the continent. Category:African countries (1983: Doomsday) Category:Angola Category:Angola (1983: Doomsday)